The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1887-09-07
~-n,EMENTs.
WHO WROTE SHAKESPEARE 7
Ignatius Donnelly's Claim at q
Baconian Authorship Care
fully Reviewed.
Many Facts Sustaining His Theo-
ries Called to the Public
Attention.
New York special. ]

nelly's attempt to dethrone Shakespeare,
and award the honor of the so-cahed
Shakespeare plays 10 Lord Bacon. The
article is written by Professor Thomas
Davidson, a well-known scholar, philoso-
pher and critic, whose opinion as to Mr..
Donnelly's work can not fail to carry great
weight.
Mr.. Davidson has recently paid Mr..
Dennelly visit at his home at Hastings,
Mimi, examined the manuscript of his
forthcoming work, the "Great Cryptogram."
had the main features of the CIPHER ex-
planned to him, and obtained permission to
report. BEFORE examining MIR. Donnelly's
work Mr.. Davidson was an entire skeptic in
regard to the Bacon theory; but he now adj
mits that he is very much shaken in his
belief that the plays were written
by Shakespeare, and declares that if
they had come down to us without any
authors name attached, they would have
been unhesitatingly attributed to Bacon.
He says he reached this conviction alto
gether apart from the CIPHER. The articles
give brief summary of the results reached
in Mr.. Donnellys book, which is to be
published about the 1st OF December. The
book is divided into two partisan argu-
ment and a demonstration. The former
collects, arranges, and sums up all the
arguments that have been put forward in
the last thirty years in favor of the
Baconian theory, and adds large number
to them. The author first endeavors to
show that the education and character of
William Shakespeare were such that it is
even ridiculous to imagine that he could
have written plays which are distilled from
oil the wisdom and learning of the world.
He shows that his education must have
been extremely meager, while that of the
author OF the plays was broad and deep.
He emphasizes the fact that we have no
record of any study on the part of Shak-
speare.
His account of Shakspeares character
will certainly be surprise to most readers.
He shows him to have been stepped in al
most every kind of vice, to have been a
fornicator, an adulterer. a usurer and OPP
pressor Of the poor, a drunkard, system
attic liar, and fOrger of pedigrees, dying in
the prime of life from the results of a
three days drunken spree. He next shows
that We have no record that Shakespeare
ever owned library of even book, and
that not a single scrap of manuscript of his
ever came down to US, not even letter to
any of the numerous men with whom he is
known to have been acquainted; nay, more,
that there is extant no letter addressed to
him, except one asking for loan of money.
There is nothing to show that Shakespeare
was not very illiterate.
Mr.. Donnelly next proves very clearly
that while the author of the plays was an
accomplished lawyer, there is nothing to
show that Shakespeare ever opened a law
book. or was inside a lawyers Office, except
on usurious business.
Having demonstrated to his own salts
faction that the author of the plays was
not Shakespeare, Mr.. Donnelly next pro-
ceeds to prove that he was Bacon. After
adducing evidence to show that Bacon was
q poet, and the author of the plays, and a
profound and learned philosopher, he treats
of the geography of the plays, and here he
brings out some most tell tale facts. While
neither Stratford where Shakespeare was
born nor Avon is ever once mentioned in
the plays, st. Adams. the home of Bacon.
is mentioned twenty three times. He next
shows that the politics and the religion of
the writer Of the plays are identical with
Bacon's politics and religion, and that what
Bacon declared to be his great life purpose
is fully exemplified in the plays.
chapter is devoted to Bacon's reasons
for concealment, and here come out some
startling facts. 1t appears not only that
Bacon wrote works which he never public
ly acknowledged, but that he is addressed
by one Of his friends as the greatest wit in
England, though not known as such by his
own name. Among the reasons for con-
oealment, Mr.. Donnelly puts tho political
tendency of some of the plays, which was
to encourage treason.
The first part of the work closes with q
long list of parallelisms between Bacon's
acknowledged works and the Shakspearaan
plays, identical expressions metaphors,
opinions, quotations, studies, errors, use
of unusual words, character, style, etc.
The parallelisms will occupy over seventy
closely printed pages. The result of the
whole argument according to Mr.. David
son. is to leave upon the mind strong i'm
preston that, if Bacon was not the sole
author of the plays, he had at least prin-
cipal hand in them, supplying the scholar
ship, the art, and the philosophy.
After the argument making the author
ship of Bacon probable comes the demon
stration, that is, the cipher narrative,
which has already aroused SO much inter-
est in the public. Mr.. Davidson's article
tells how Mr.. Donnelly came TO look for a
cipher, and the laborious process by which
he finally found it Gas he believes). The
story is full of interest.
As to the cipher itself, Mr.. Davidson
does not claim to be in position to en-
NhCiy ebboAy thO PupiANS NV huNihb AO-
ceived from Mr.. Donnelly the ultimate
formula of it. He does, however, express
his strong conviction that Mr.. Donnelly is
neither fraud nor crank" To clear
away any feeling of this sort on the part of
the public, he gives brief account of Mr..
Donnellys career, and description of his
simple home life in Minnesota. 1t seems
that Mr.. Donnelly is a quiet, genial. coun-
try-loving, studious man, devoted to
thought, and fond of good Joke. The
picture drawn Of his life on the Mississippi
bluff is charming. 1t being certain that
Mr.. Donnelly is not fraud, and not like
", his character and intelligence being
taken into account, to be self deceived,
Mr.. Davidson hardly sees how the con-
clusion that the cipher is reality can be
avoided. He, however suspends his own
judgment until Mr.. Donnelly has said his
last word. About the cipher itself, much
new information is given. Its basis. num-
bers, and its moditiers are disclosed, and
it is shown whence they are derived. In
formation is also given as to how the CAL
culations are made, and assurance is made
excepting possible clerical errors they are
correct. Some notion of the labor gone
through by Mr. Donnelly may be obtained
from the statement that the slips of paper
on which he has made his calculations
Che writes find hand and on both
sides of the slip when tied up in a
bundle, can with difficulty be lifted